Leer loader



Oct. 24, 1933. 5 B, BQWMAN ET AL 1,932,301

' LEERLOADER Fld Feb. 14, 1931 4 SheelZS-Sheet '1.

t 24, 1933 s. B. BowMAN Er AL 1,932,301

LEER LOADER Filed Feb. 14, 1931 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Oct. 24, 1933. s. B. BowMAN ET AL LEER LOADER Filed Feb. 14, 1931 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 nventor ulm/021 Oct. 24, 1933- s. B. BowMAN ET Al. 1,932,301

LEER LOADER Filed Feb. 14, 1931 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Patented Oct. 24, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT oFFlcE D. Jackson,

Zanesville, Ohio,

assignors to Hazel-Atlas Glass Co., Wheeling, W. Va., a corporation of West Virginia Application February 14, 1931. Serial No. 515,810 7 Claims. (Cl. 198-24) This invention relates to an improved apparatus for transferring glassware to a leer and is more particularly directed to means for steadying the ware as it is pushed by a stripper bar from a rotating table or a cross-conveyer to the leer conveyer. While the invention is shown as applied to a leer loader such as disclosed in the applications of Arthur Covey, Ser. No. 290,834, filed July 6, 1928, and Ser. No. 462,564, filed June l0 20, 1930, it will be obvious that `with slight variations the attachment may be readily adapted to other leer loaders of the stripper bar type.

One of the objects of the invention resides in the provision of a ware steadying device of fairly simple construction, which is adjustable to suit ware of different heights and widths, and which will operate to maintain in vertical position such ware as is liable to be upset by reason of its dimensions, weight, or conilguration.J

A further object of the invention consists in the provision of means for replacing in the line of travel through the leer any piece of ware which may not have come entirely within the range of the stripper. bar and has therefore beenl pushed to one side by it.

Another object of the invention consists in the provision of means to control the lowering ofthe stripper bar as embodied in the Covey leer loader so that it may gradually come to a stop at its 80 lowermost position, thereby eliminating noise, vi-

brations, etc. y f

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description when taken in connection with the accompanying 85 drawings, in which Figure l is a side elevational view of the front end of a leer showing the improved leer loader mounted in placer thereon.

Figure 2 is a plan view of the combination shown in Figure l.

Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view taken on line 3-3 of Figure 1. Figure 4 is a transverse sectional view taken on line 4-4 of Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a detail perspective view of the stripper bar' and certain related parts.

Figure 6 is an enlarged plan view of the front end of the leer and leer loader and showing in dotted lines the operative positions of certain of the parts; and

Figure 7 is a fragmentary side view, partly in section.

Referring to the drawings in greater detail the numeral 1 designates aleer which is provided 05 with the usual convey'er 2, and shadow pan 3,

The loading device is mounted on one side lonly of the leer, and comprises a stripper bar 5 and a rod 6, to which one end of the stripper bar is secured.

The rod 8 is mounted so as to be reciprocated go back and forth along its axis and also to be tilted to raise and lower the stripper bar 5. For this purpose, a frame 'I is tiltably mounted on one side of the leer, as indicated by numeral 8, and is provided with pairs of roller bearings 9 through g5 which the rod 6 is reciprocated back and forth. The pivot 8 is supported on a bracket 10, and a bracket 11 is provided with a screw 12 adapted to form a stop to limit the lowering of the front end of rod 6.

The stripper bar 5 is supported at one end only, namely, that end which is secured to the reciprocating rod 6; and in order to prevent the bar from sagging, means is provided on the rod for cooperation with the frame 1 to resist any 75 torque set up in the rod. 'Ihis means comprises a block 15 clamped to the rod as indicated at 15' and provided with a roller 16 on its lower end. This roller is adapted to ride back and forth in guideway 17 formed in frame 7. thereby provid- 30 ing a strong and emcient means for retaining the stripper bar 5 in a horizontal position at all times.

For reciprocating the rod and stripper bar, there is provided a crank arm 18 which is driven 3g through reduction gearing 19 by means of an electric motor 20: these elements being preferably supported on a' framework iii extending over the leer. Reciprocating movement is imparted to the rod 8 by means of a connecting oo rod 22 which is pivotally connected to the crank 18, as indicated by numeral 23; its opposite end being pivotaliy connected to the rod 6. as indicated by numeral 24. This connecting rod 22 is of the turnbuckle type and thus provides os means for varying the extreme limits 'of movement o! the `stripper bar toward and from the mouth of the leer.

To provide means for tilting the rod 8 andthus raising and lowering the stripper bar 5 to edect 100 proper movements thereof to avoid oncoming ware, the crank arm 18 is provided witha roller 25 on thatk side of the crank arm. adjacent the rod 6. After the crank arm 18 has rotated rearwardly in the direction oi the arrow to'feed the warel to the leer, the roller 25 will engage the adjacent end of the rod 8 as indicated by dotted lines on Figure 1. vThis engagement of the roller 25 withrodwilldepressthatend oftherod llldthlioausetheframe'ltoberockeduponlli) its pivot 8 thereby raising the stripper bar so that it may clear the top of the oncoming ware as the bar is moved backward to its initial position. It should be noted in this connection that the roller 25 is positioned out of alignment with the line passing through the pivot 23 of the connecting rod and the center of rotation of the crank arm 18. By means of this particular positioning of the roller 25 with respect to the pivot point 23 of the connecting rod, it will be apparent that the roller will not engage the rod until afterv pivot 23 has passed below the horizontal plane of rod 6. Accordingly, a slight rearward movement will be imparted to the rod prior to the initiation of the downward movement of the end thereof, with the result that the stripper bar 5 is backed away a slight distance from the Ware which has been moved into the leer, before the stripper bar is raised, thus avoiding any tendency to displace or upset the ware.

For the purpose of reducing noise and vibration when the roller 25 releases the rod 6, a cam 13 is secured to crank arm 18. One end of the cam is pivoted on the shaft of roller 25 and the other end is made adjustable by means of bolt 14 and slot 14' in the crank arm. This cam engages rod 6 as the roller 25 releases the rod and thus serves to allow the frame to come gently to rest against the stop screw.

Before describing the operation of this particular loading device, we shall first describe the rotary table, and the mechanism for rotating the table.

Numeral 27 refers to a base member upon which the leer rests. This base member has a forward extension upon which rests a frame 28 in which is rotatably mounted the shaft 30 of a table 31, the latter lying ush with the shadow pan 3. Thus the leer, the loader, the rotary table and its operating mechanism constitute a single unit which may be moved to any desired position relative to a forming machine. The base member may be provided with rollers if desired, to assist in properly positioning it in the plant.

The shaft 30 carries'at its lower end a bevel gear 32 meshing with a bevel gear 33 on a horizontal shaft 34. Also fixed to this shaft 34 is a sprocket Wheel 35 driven from a sprocket wheel 36 on a shaft 37, by means of a sprocket chain 38. The shaft 37 is driven by a sprocket chain 38 which is operated from al sprocket wheel 39 on shaft40. This latter shaft also carries a sprocket wheel 41 driven by chain 42 which -meshes with sprocket wheel 43 of the reduction gearing. Inasmuch as the reduction gear is driven by motor 20, it is apparent that the motor drives both the unloading device and the table; the stripper bar of the unloading device being continuously reciprocated and the table being continuously rotated. v

The unit, consisting of the leer, the rotary table, the stripper bar and the mechanism for operating the table and bar, is so positioned that the table will be in cooperative relation with a forming machine. The particular position of the table with respect to the forming machine is not important, providing it' is close enough to the forming machine to permit the ordinary take-out device to remove the finished articlesy from the molds at the delivery position and deposit them on the table. It is immaterial at what point around the periphery of the table the articles are deposited.

The articles, being placed on the table one by one, are carried around by the table until they are brought in front of the leer. At the proper instant the stripper bar will operate-to sweep the articles in front of it, forward onto the leer conveyer 2. If the articles are being placed on the rotary table at a point somewhere near the leer front, then only two or three of the articles may remain on the table after each operation of the stripper bar, and those few remaining will, of course, continue their travel until they are in front of the leer ready to be carried forward by the stripper bar. On the other hand, if the articles are being placed on the rotary table at a point remote from the leer front, then it is apparent that there will be a long string of1 articles on the table at all times, a certain number of which are swept forward into the leer with each operation of the stripper bar. So it is apparent that the articles may be placed on the table near the leer front, remote therefrom, or at any intermediate and oonvenient point. Of course, the stripper bar does not extend all the way across the table, unless the diameter ofthe table happens to be substantially equal to the width of the leer conveyer. Usually the table is much wider than the leer conveyer, as in the specific form illustrated herein, and the tripper bar is of such length that its free end is just about in alignment with the far side of the leer conveyer.

A brief description of the operation of the stripper and its mechanism will now be given; it being understood that the invention is not limited to this particular loading device, in the novel combination.

When the loader is put into operation, the bolt 12 is adjusted vertically so as to properly position the stripper bar 5 with respect to the particular ware which is being made on the forming machine, thereby accommodating the leer loader to the center of gravity of the ware; and the turnbuckle 22 is adjusted to properly x the limits of movement of the stripper bar. As described hereinbefore, the loading device and the rotary table are operated by the motor 20, so that their movements are synchronized; the speed of operation being controlled by the motor and the reduction gearing. The parts are so timed that when the table has rotated to `bring in front of the leer a line of ware substantially equal to the width of the leer tunnel, the stripper bar will operate to draw the string of ware off the rotating table, across the shadow pan 3 and onto the leer conveyer 2; which will carry it slowly forward through the leer.

After the ware is brought onto the leer conveyer 2, the crank arm 18 will pass below the horizontal plane of its pivot point and cause the stripper bar to back away slightly from the ware, just before the roller 25 engages the rod 6. While the roller 25 is depressing the end of the rod 6, the rearward movement of the rod will also be continued due to the rotary movement of the crank arm 18. Thus the stripper bar will follow an arcuate path approximating that shown by the dotted lines in Figure 1. As the crank arm rises, roller 25 and cam 13 will allow the stripper bar tov gradually descend to'its initial position, projecting across a portion of the rotating table. In the meantime, the rotation of the table has carried another string of ware into position in front of the leer and the continued rotation of the crank arm 18 will again operate the stripper arm to sweep the string from the table onto the leer conveyer; the reciprocating of the stripper bar and the rotation of the table continuing as long as the forming machine is in operation. It will be noted that from the time the articles are taken from the molds until they are in the annealing leer, they are subjected to only one movement relative to the' surfaces upon which they are supported, which is when they are swept forward by the stripper bar from the table to the leer conveyer.

We shall now describe the ware steadying bar and the replacer bar which are shown as attachments tothe leer loader just described; it being understood, however, that these attachments may be employed with stripper bars employing substantially different operating means. f

Slidably associated with the stripper bar 5, as by means of a guide bracket 50, is a rod 51. The opposite end of this rod is provided with a yoke 52 through which extends the pivot pin 24 of the connecting rod 22. This yoke provides a lostmotion connection between the rod 51 and the rod 6, and an adjusting screw 53 is mounted in one end of the yoke so as to provide for the variation in the extent of lost-motion between the rod 51 and the rod 6.

A ware steadying bar 54 is carried by the rod 51 and in order that it may bevertically adjustable to suit Ware of varying heights, the bar is attached to a slotted plate 55 which is in turn bolted to the rod 51. The bolt 56 which secures the plate 55 to the rod 51 extends through a slot 57 in the rod 51 and thus the bar 54 may be adjusted in two directions, so as to accommodate itself to the particular ware being conveyed into the leer.

Inasmuch as the ware steadying bar 54 is supported only at one end, it is desirable that some means be provided to prevent the bar from sagging, and to this end the rod 51 is provided with a downwardly extending arm 58 on the lower end of which is mounted a roller 59. This roller 59 engages against the inner side of a plate 60 which is rigidly connected to the pivoted frame 7, and the roller travels back and forth along the face of this plate as the ware steadying bar moves relative to the stripper bar 5.

By reason of this construction just described, it will be apparent that the ware steadying bar 54 may assume two different positions with respect to the stripper bar 5, one remote from the stripper bar and the other close to the stripper bar; the latter position depending upon the particular setting of the screw 53. As the stripper bar is drawn toward the leer conveyer it will gradually approach the ware steadying bar 54 since the latter will remain stationary until such time as the pivot pin 54 engages the screw 53. At this time the stripper bar will have aligned the ware to be transported to the leer conveyer, and the ware steadying bar will be in a position relative to the ware to prevent it from being tilted over by the force applied to it by the stripper bar. After the ware is placed on the leer and the stripper bar is raised and returned to its 'initial position, the ware steadying bar 54 will lag behind until such time as the pivot pin engages the front end of the slot in yoke 52, after which the ware steadying bar will move rearwardly with the stripper bar and will assume a position as indicated in full lines in Figures 2 and 6. This relative movement between the two bars is repeated on each cycle of operation of the stripper bar, and it continues so long as the leer loader continues in operation.

It sometimes happens that a piece of ware is improperly placed on the rotating table, or the cross-conveyer, as the case may be, and is there- 'ed in a bearing 64 on the side of the leer.

fore not engaged squarely by the stripper bar when moving toward the leer conveyer. Under such circumstances the stripper bar will sometimes push the piece of ware to one side so that it will have to be manually placed in the line of operation of the stripper bar. By means of the present invention a replacer bar 61, preferably lined withasbestos or the like 62, is mounted on the side of the leer and is automatically operated after each operation of the stripper bar so as to push any displaced ware into the line of operation of the stripper bar so that it may be carried onto the leer conveyer at the next operation of the stripper bar. The replacer bar 61 is secured to the inner end of a rod 63 which is slidably mount- Secured to the opposite end of the rod 63 is a bar 65 which extends downwardly below the leer and has its lower end fixedly secured to a rod 66 slidably mounted in a bracket 67 secured on the under side of the leer. Pivotally connected to the opposite end of the rod 66 is a link 68 which has its opposite end pivotally connected to a bell crank lever 69, which is in turn pivoted to a bearing member 70 secured tothe adjacent corner of the leer. The bell crank lever 69 is preferably provided with a plurality of apertures for pivoting the link 68 at a variety of positions, so as to vary the throw of the bell crank and hence the extent of movement of the replacer bar 61. The other arm of the bell crank lever extends through a slot 72 in a plate 71, and pins 73 are passed through the arm on opposite sides of the plate 71 so as to prevent any disengagement between the plate 71. and the arm of the bell crank. The plate 71 is connected to an arm 74 which has its upper end pivoted to the forward end of the frame 7. It will be apparent, therefore, that as the frame 7 is rocked by roller 25 on the crank arm 18 during the operation of the stripper bar, the bell crank lever will be rocked about its pivot in the bearing 70 and thus will intermittently reciprocate the replacer bar 61, thereby returning to the line of movement of the stripper bar any ware which has been moved to one side by the previous inward movement of the stripper bar.

The operation of the several novel features of the invention have been fully described in connection with the description of their construction, and a repetition of the operation is believed to be unnecessary.

From the above detailed description taken in connection with the attached drawings, it will be apparent tov those skilled in the art that we have provided improvements in leer loaders of the stripper bar type that prevent any possibility of upsetting the ware as it is being transported to the leer conveyer; that the means provided for this purpose is adjustable to adapt it to ware of varying dimensions and configurations; that very simple means are also provided for returning into the line of operation of the stripper bar any ware which has been displaced by the previous operation of the stripper bar; and that by the addition of a cam to the crank arm employed in depressing the operating rod, the noise and vibration heretofore caused by the operation of the stripper bars of the present type have been largely eliminated.

In accordance with the patent statutes we have described the preferred embodiment of the invention, but many changes and modifications may be made in the details of construction without departing from the spirit of the invention, and all such We aim to include in the scope of the appended claims.

What we claim is:

v1. A leer` loader including a reciprocably mounted stripper bar, means for moving said bar toward and from a leer, a ware-steadying bar mounted for movement toward and from said stripper bar, and a lost motion connection between the two bars.

2. A leer loader including a stripper bar, a reciprocably mounted rod to which said bar is attached, a ware-steadying bar mounted for movement toward and from the stripper bar, a rod connected to the ware-steadying bar and a pin and slot connection between said rods.

3.v A leer loader including a reciprocably mounted stripper bar, means for moving said bar toward and from a leer, a ware-steadying bar mounted for movement toward and from said stripper bar, a lost-motion connection between the two bars, and means for varying the extent of lost motion.

4. A leer loader including a stripper bar, a rod carrying the stripper bar, a rotatable arm for intermittently engaging and tilting said rod, and means on the arm for causing a gradual return of the rod to horizontal position.

5. A leer loader including a stripper bar, a rod carrying the stripper bar, a rotatable arm, a

roller on said arm and vadapted to intermittently engage and tilt the rod, and a cam face on the arm for allowing a gradual return of the rod to horizontal position.

6. A leer loader including a stripper bar for projecting ware into a leer, a ware-steadying bar associated with the stripper bar, means for reciprocating the stripper bar and the waresteadying bar, means for raising and lowering the stripper bar and the ware-steadying bar, and a lost-motion connection 'between the two bars. 4

7. A leer loader including a stripper bar for projecting ware into a. leer, driving mechanism SAMUEL B. BOWMAN. EDWIN HAUB. HERBERT D. JACKSON. 

